Round Up

Members of one of the Millington Arts and Recreation Senior League team head to the dugout after an inning last week at Joyner Park. Lately, the field conditions became more of a topic around town than the outcome of the games.

Recently parents of children playing in the Millington Arts & Recreation baseball and softball leagues have taken to social media and mainstream media to voice their concerns.
The focus was on the field conditions around the playing fields in Millington. Cell phone pictures were taken of grass growing around bases, green softball infields and holes in the outfield.
“It was a safety issue with the grass, popping up hitting the kids in the face on a ground ball,” one of the Senior League coaches Ken Scarborough said. “It’s the grass covering the holes in the outfield. Not mending the holes in the field might cause a tripping hazard. It’s all around safety issue for teenage girls. We allow it on any job, so why is it allowed on a city field?”
Many questions floated around the city and Internet about who was responsible, especially at Joyner Field. The field is home of the Millington Lady Trojans, next door to Miles Park, home of the Millington Trojan Baseball team.
During the school seasons, the players, coaches and volunteers maintain those fields. Both fields belong to Millington Central High School.
An MCHS administrator informed The Star that during the Arts & Recreation season, the city is responsible for the up kept of the field from the fence line and inside.
The city and MCHS agreed on a trade of facilities. Joyner would be used by the city for Seniors, while MCHS got use of the city’s tennis courts for practices.
It became evident that the voices of the parents were heard last week with fields being dragged and grass trimmed from around the bases. Scarborough said he was glad to see that effort but he is still concerned about the long term answers for this season and future seasons.
“It shouldn’t have taken all the complaining to get it done,” he concluded. “This should have started at the first of the season. Parents paid the money for maintaining the fields. Why did this field, mainly this field, get neglected to the point you have a hole behind the dugout that’s about three-feet deep? That cone has been there since the beginning of the season.”